VICTOR JOECKS: Stop Culinary from shutting down the Las Vegas Strip

The police are supposed to stop crime, not facilitate it. Yet the latter appears to be Metropolitan Police Department’s approach to a labor group’s plan to shut down the Strip.

On Wednesday, the Culinary union is planning another rally as it negotiates for a new contract with several casinos. Workers will gather in front of the Bellagio and Paris Las Vegas. Assuming the Culinary members let pedestrians pass, that would be fine.

But that’s not all the union is prepared to do. According to Culinary’s own news release, it’s going to shut down a lane of traffic on each side of the Strip from 4 to 6 p.m. At 6 p.m., “approximately 75 hospitality workers” plan “to be arrested in a nonviolent protest action. Protesters will take Las Vegas Boulevard across multiple lanes between Bellagio and Paris. Extremely limited traffic access during this time.”

The Culinary says it will cede control of the Strip back to the public at 8 p.m. How generous. Controlling the roads is supposed to be responsibility of the government. In other circumstances, blatantly usurping the government’s authority would be considered an act of insurrection.

If something seems off here, you’re right. Most wrongdoers don’t detail their crimes publicly, let alone invite media coverage. It would be absurd for a would-be thief to describe his plan to rob a casino on social media. The cops might arrest him beforehand. They might wait for him at the casino. Or, after the robbery, they would know who to arrest.

But robbing a casino carries a real penalty. Disrupting traffic on the most important road in Nevada doesn’t. At most, those 75 people will be arrested for a misdemeanor or given a small fine. My prediction: Police drop all charges once the cameras turn off.

Because that’s what this is all about. It’s a play for the media. A show of power. A “sure would be a shame if something happened to your casinos” moment. Only the mob wouldn’t have dreamed of using the police as a prop for their shakedowns. As an aside, everyone should stop pretending that being arrested in events such as this is anything more than a worn-out publicity stunt.

Metro’s apparent willingness to play along undercuts the rule of the law. Nevada’s statute prohibits people from using the middle of the one of the busiest roads in the state to protest. There’s no exemption for union contract disputes.

Police shouldn’t wait to arrest union members on their terms. They should proactively stop them from blocking traffic and arrest those who enter the roadway. Prosecutors should charge them to the full extent of the law. That’s not likely. In response to numerous questions, Metro emailed me a tweet that told the public to expect road closures from a “planned rally.” It also said to contact Culinary for more information.

Allowing this charade to go forward would be an inconvenience and potentially dangerous. Motorists expect to be able to drive on the road. Allowing people to illegally stand in the middle of roads increases the likelihood of accidents.

Let the union rally. Let the union strike. But police shouldn’t tolerate the union’s blatant law breaking.

Victor Joecks’ column appears in the Opinion section each Sunday, Wednesday and Friday. Contact him at vjoecks@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4698. Follow @victorjoecks on X.